AMANDA SEYFRIED - THE BEAUTIFUL ONE BY SKYE HUNTINGTON

Amanda Seyfried has carved a distinctive place in Hollywood through her versatility and emotional authenticity. From early breakout roles in Mean Girls and Mamma Mia! to critically acclaimed performances in Les Misérables and First Reformed, Seyfried has consistently demonstrated an ability to inhabit characters with nuance and depth. 



Those opportunities present themselves again soon in the form of The Housemaid, based on the 2022 thriller by Freida McFadden. In it, she stars as Nina, wife to Andrew and mother to Cecelia – a family who live a seemingly perfect life in a luxurious estate on Long Island.



Yet when housekeeper Millie (Sydney Sweeney) arrives, looking to arrest a troubled past, she finds her own demons have been replaced by those present in the house, with dark undercurrents ready to be exposed.



For Seyfried, the movie represents another opportunity to flex the sort of versatility she has shown in recent projects – from the comedy horror present in I Don’t Understand You to historical drama The Testament of Ann Lee, through to prison drama The Life and Deaths of Wilson Shedd, due for release next year.



Mother of two and happily married, Seyfried is expressing the kind of freedom that comes with someone who is totally content with their choices. That makes sense - after all, the actress has a grounded, family-focused life.



Known for her advocacy work, commitment to wellness, sophisticated fashion choices, and devotion to animals, she blends professional dedication with personal authenticity.



STRIPLV: What drew you to The Housemaid?

SEYFRIED: I think I was drawn to the complexity of Nina. She’s someone who appears controlled on the surface but is navigating a lot emotionally. The story explores tension and moral ambiguity in a very human way. That combination of subtlety and intensity is exactly what excites me as an actor.

STRIPLV: How do you prepare for such a psychologically demanding role?

SEYFRIED: I spend a lot of time understanding her inner world, thinking about what motivates her and what fears she carries. Also, the level of collaboration with other cast members and director Paul Feig on this was incredible. I knew it was going to be one of those projects that actually took me to dark places, but where I am right now in life, I was happy to go there. I am honest enough to say I’ve not always been in this sort of place. In the past, I may have shied away from this kind of movie as it would have been too much to take back home with me at the end of each night.

STRIPLV: How do you adapt to so many different genres?

SEYFRIED: Well, each one has its own rhythm and tone. Musicals require a sense of timing and musicality, and there is so much unspoken within them because the dialogue, outside of the songs, can actually be rather short. Naturally, dramas and thrillers demand subtlety and internal focus. Ultimately, the key is always truthfulness - finding the human reality in the character, regardless of the genre.

STRIPLV: How has your approach to acting evolved over time?

SEYFRIED: I’ve become more intentional about choosing roles that challenge me and resonate emotionally. I know that sounds obvious, but when you’re younger, it’s a lot easier to be led by people around you or trends. To do that actually takes bravery that I’m not sure I had at one point, but definitely these days I’m more patient with preparation and trust my instincts, which has allowed me to take risks and deepen my performances.

STRIPLV: You are constantly busy. How do you balance work and home life?

SEYFRIED: It’s a constant juggling act. I prioritise routines and make sure to carve out time for family. Being present with them keeps me grounded and reminds me why I do this work. Travel and long shoots can be challenging, but technology helps bridge the distance when necessary.

STRIPLV: Do you integrate personal experience into your roles?

SEYFRIED: Yes, in subtle ways. Emotions, reactions, or memories inform choices, but they’re always balanced with the story and the character’s unique context. That’s what creates authenticity.

STRIPLV: How do you approach the physical aspects of a role?

SEYFRIED: It depends on the character. For The Housemaid, it was more about posture, subtle gestures, and presence than extreme transformation. Physicality always interacts with emotion, so I pay attention to how the body conveys inner life.

STRIPLV: What advice would you give to young actors entering the industry today?

SEYFRIED: Focus on craft, not on recognition. Observe, listen, and take risks creatively. Don’t chase trends — seek roles and projects that challenge you and resonate with your values.

STRIPLV: Looking ahead, what kinds of stories excite you most?

SEYFRIED: Stories that explore relationships, identity, and moral complexity. I’m drawn to characters that reveal unexpected layers and to narratives that encourage audiences to think and feel deeply.

STRIPLV: Your pet dog Finn hasn’t appeared with you as much recently.

SEYFRIED: Finn is 15, so getting on, and we have to pick and choose his public engagements [laughs]. He is amazing, though, and I honestly don’t know who I’d be without Finn. He’s been with me through the hardest times of my life, from the ups and downs of work to the challenges of motherhood. He grounds me. When I come home, no matter what’s going on, he’s there with his eyes saying, ‘It’s okay, we’re good, and I need that. I have said for years that the farm saved me, because I was finding LA and the environment around work just so stressful. In reality, of course, it wasn’t the farm - it was the pets and animals who live on the farm! Every day they remind me what’s real in life - they don’t care about awards or premieres. They care if you’re five minutes late with their food.

STRIPLV: He is a celebrity in his own right, isn’t he?

SEYFRIED: He’s better at modelling than me,” she laughs. “He knows his angles. He’ll just sit there, completely regal, while I’m fidgeting. Once, a photographer asked if we could just shoot Finn and skip me. Honestly, I wasn’t offended. I get it!

STRIPLV: You have a number of other animals at the farm, too.

SEYFRIED: It’s chaos, but it’s the best kind. People ask me why I surround myself with animals, and I say, ‘Why wouldn’t I? They never lie to you. They never let you down. They just exist with you, and that’s a beautiful thing.’

STRIPLV: Your love of dogs was seen in the film The Art of Racing in the Rain, the adaptation of Garth Stein’s novel told from the perspective of a golden retriever named Enzo.

SEYFRIED: Yes, that was a dream. Parker, who played Enzo, was brilliant. I didn’t have to fake anything - for every scene with Parker, I just thought about Finn. In their personalities, they are similar in many ways, so it felt so natural… like a tribute to the love we all feel for our dogs. People cried watching that film because they recognised themselves and their pets. That bond is universal.

STRIPLV: Why do you love animals so much?

SEYFRIED: I just don’t think we can or should ever underestimate what they give you. You can’t put a price on the loyalty and love of an animal. They’re here for such a short part of our lives, but for them, we are their whole life. That’s a responsibility and a gift. I just hope I make Finn’s life as good as he’s made mine. Of course, having pets is also amazing for our children. It can be pure chaos at times, particularly when you think you’ve got things under control, because let me tell you, you never really have! However, the joy they give each other is worth it. Watching my daughter run around with Finn or my son giggling at the chickens… those are the moments I live for.

STRIPLV: And yet you have a passion for stuffed animals and taxidermy?

SEYFRIED: My sister Jennifer and I are obsessed with that. We have this morbid fascination with things. We love animals, living and dead. I even have a stuffed horse, Antoine. We also collect heads of old dolls. I like to give things a chance at a second life. My mother spends a lot of time in the attic trying to figure out where to put all the stuff that we accumulate. Mom will send me text messages asking for permission to throw out something: postcards, photos of Julie Christie. I'm a hoarder. I always keep everything. I guess I'm very sentimental and I have a tough time letting go of things which have certain memories for me.

STRIPLV: Will turning 40 be a significant milestone for you?

SEYFRIED: Oh God, no! I have always worried that I'm running out of time, even though I'm still pretty young. You think that the last decade, or whatever, has just gone by in a flash, and you think that you should have done more. Life just feels very short, and I wonder how I'm going to get everything done that I want to. That said, getting married and becoming a mother was such a big thing – it was a real milestone. Sometimes you just have to waitfor everything to fall into place.

STRIPLV: In the past, you've spoken about having to worry about your weight and trying not to have to starve yourself to conform to Hollywood's idea of female beauty?

SEYFRIED: I'm pretty comfortable with how I look. I would like to be taller, maybe, but I'm happy the way I am, which is something it takes a while to experience as a woman. We're always looking at our flaws. What's so strange is that even though a lot of magazine articles always mentioned my eyes, in school, all the kids made fun of my big eyes. Children can be really cruel, that way. But when I started getting acting jobs, my eyes became something that people loved about me. That kind of teaches you something about just accepting yourself and not being frantic about what other people think.

STRIPLV: Do you feel your anxiety issues are behind you?

SEYFRIED: I'm a lot better than I used to be, and it's something I've been working on the past few years. It took me a while to stop denying it or just trying to live with it. I finally saw that I needed to address my anxiety and stage fright more directly, and that's been the best thing I could have done for myself. I'm able to enjoy my life much more now, although I still worry about things that  I shouldn't worry about. But I also have good friends and a great family who give me a lot of love and support. Ultimately, becoming a mother sorts out so much in you and gives you a platform where you realize your purpose isn’t self-protection, it’s actually in looking after this other little life. It’s been a really 

positive thing for me.

 AMANDA’S TRUE-CRIME FASCINATION
Amanda Seyfried’s obsession with human psychology is more than just a pastime.

Amanda Seyfried has admitted more than once that she’s hooked on true-crime stories.

She listens to podcasts on grisly cases during downtime and often uses them as fuel for her own acting research. That fascination dovetailed perfectly with her acclaimed turn in The Dropout (2022), where she played convicted fraudster Elizabeth Holmes. However, even before that, Seyfried had dabbled in thrillers like Gone (2012) and You Should Have Left (2020).

Off-screen, her interest isn’t morbid curiosity so much as a desire to understand human psychology, what drives people to commit shocking acts, and how society responds.

It’s part hobby, part study, and entirely in tune with her gift for layered performances.